Thread: Impounded oil smuggling vessels missing from police pier in Sattahip

The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) has ordered the formation of a committee to investigate the disappearance of three vessels, reportedly loaded with about 330,000 litres of smuggled oil, from the pier of the marine police in Sattahip district of Chon Buri.


The vessels, belonging to a major oil smuggler in southern Thailand, known as “Jo Pattani”, were apprehended by Economic Crime Division officers in March, along with their crews. The vessels had been moored at the pier in Sattahip since March 17th.


According to a report from Sattahip marine police, the officers in charge of the seized vessels allowed their skippers to move them away from the pier and to anchor in the sea, about 100 metres from the coast, out of concerns that the vessels could be damaged by a storm which hit the district on Tuesday night.


Lights were switched on, so the vessels could be seen from the shore, until at about 10pm when they were switched off. It wasn’t until Wednesday morning that marine police discovered that all three vessels had disappeared.


An extensive air and search of the Gulf was launched yesterday, covering Chon Buri, Rayong, Chanthaburi and Trat provinces, but the vessels could not be located and are believed to have taken refuge in Cambodia.


Pol Maj-Gen Charoonkiat Pankaew, the CIB’s deputy commissioner, is due to visit the Sattahip marine police pier today to oversee the investigation.

Impounded oil smuggling vessels missing from police pier in Sattahip - Thai PBS World

So, they've lost three oil tankers from the marine police pier.

That's going some, even for Thailand.

(Oh I almost forgot...shitty port authority, shitty tankers, medieval snakepit).

Search continues today for 3 missing oil smuggling vessels

The search continues today for the three oil smuggling vessels, which disappeared from the marine police pier in Sattahip on Wednesday and are believed to be heading for Cambodia.


The skippers of the vessels are believed to have sailed close to the shoreline, to avoid detection from the air, and to have relied on their standard navigation skills, since the GPS equipment had been removed, according to the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB).


Eleven of the crew, who knew about the plan to liberate the vessels did not take part, have been questioned by the police.


They said that the plan was hatched about a month ago. Some said they did not want to escape because they didn’t want to face more charges.


A black pickup truck was spotted at the same pier, parked close to marine police boat 633, but police say that the truck had nothing to do with the disappearance of the three boats and it was there to supply fresh water to the marine police boat.


Four Sattahip district marine police officers were transferred to the operations centre of the Central Investigation Bureau yesterday, pending the outcome of an investigation into the disappearance of impounded vessels.


The four officers are the superintendent of the district marine police, Pol Col Intharat Panya, the investigative inspector, Pol Lt-Col Kobchai To-on and two junior officers, Pol Sgt Thammarat Lekmontra and Pol Corporal Apichart Channu.


The CIB has ordered the formation of a committee to investigate the disappearance of the vessels, reportedly loaded with about 330,000 litres of smuggled oil and moored at the pier since March 17th.


The vessels, belonging to a major oil smuggler in southern Thailand, known as “Jo Pattani”, were apprehended by Economic Crime Division officers in March, along with their crews.


According to a report from Sattahip marine police, the officers in charge of the seized vessels allowed their skippers to move them away from the pier and to anchor at sea, about 100 metres from the coast, out of concerns that they could be damaged by a storm which hit the district on Tuesday night.


It wasn’t until Wednesday morning that marine police discovered that all three vessels had disappeared.

Search continues today for 3 missing oil smuggling vessels - Thai PBS World

Such incompetence can only come at a price.

Originally Posted by misskit

The skippers of the vessels are believed to have sailed close to the shoreline, to avoid detection from the air

Slick.

Three missing oil smuggling vessels detected in Malaysia’s EEZ

Police have found the three missing oil smuggling boats floating in Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone and will escort them back to Thailand’s southern province of Songkhla, according to the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB).


The three vessels, with about 330,000 litres of fuel on board, disappeared from a marine police pier in Sattahip on June 12th, along with 18 crew members. Four marine police officers in Sattahip have been transferred to the CIB’s operations command pending the outcome of an investigation.


The CIB had sought cooperation from police in Cambodia, Malaysia and Vietnam in the search for the vessels and they were sighted today in Malaysia’s EEZ, close to open water. Thai marine police boats were quickly dispatched to investigate.


Pol Maj-Gen Charoonkiat Pankaew, CIB deputy commissioner, said that the three vessels, reportedly belonging to “Jo Pattani”, a major oil smuggler in the southern provinces, initially headed for Cambodian waters, after leaving the Sattahip pier on June 12th, and then changed direction towards southern Thailand.


He said he expects all three vessels to be escorted back into Thai waters off Songkhla province by Wednesday.

Three missing oil smuggling vessels detected in Malaysia’s EEZ - Thai PBS World

Arrest warrant sought for ‘Joe Pattani’ over theft of impounded oil-smuggling vessels

Police will seek arrest warrants against those who they believe to be the “big fish” behind the disappearance of three oil-smuggling boats, which had been officially impounded and moored off Sattahip in Chon Buri province.


Pol Col Anek Taosuparb, deputy crime suppression police chief, said today that, among the potential suspects is Sahachai Jiansermsin, also known as “Joe Pattani”, who reportedly runs a lucrative racketeering network in the south.


The information, obtained from interviewing the crews of the two vessels still in custody, pointed directly to Sahachai, the colonel said.


The three missing oil-smuggling boats were among five apprehended by Economic Crime Division officers in March, along with their crews.


According to a report from Sattahip marine police, the officers in charge of the seized vessels allowed their skippers to move them away from the pier and to anchor at sea, about 100 meters from the coast, out of concern that they could be damaged by a storm that hit the district on June 11.


It wasn’t until the following morning that police discovered that all three vessels, with about 330,000 litres of fuel on board, had disappeared.


They were eventually detected floating in Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone and were towed back to Songkhla province yesterday.


Eight of the 15 crew members and seven dogs on the boats were also detained.


Police inspected the boats today, to check the remaining oil in storage, with an initial report claiming that only a small amount was left on the vessels.


Police said that those who stole the boats had tried to change the colour of one boat.


As of today, no one has come forward to claim ownership of the vessels.

Arrest warrant sought for 'Joe Pattani' over theft of impounded oil-smuggling vessels - Thai PBS World